With today’s technology and everything making its way to the virtual world it was only time that it made it to the automotive world. We are not talking about the latest video game, but we are talking about Ford’s new dynamometer changes that.

The dyno simulates steep grades by providing pull against the vehicle, using a brake limiter – a series of electric coils wired together that are energized, acting like a large magnet. This drawbar pull against the truck mimics the effects of gravity while driving up an incline.

Ford is able to test many different towing situations where their new dyno. The best part is they do not need to leave their proving grounds to do it.

The new dyno is capable of a maximum drawbar pull of 5,620 pounds, which is a 181 percent increase compared to the 2,000 pounds from the previous dyno. The new setup simulates steeper hills.  A common simulated grade used for testing is approximately seven percent, but the new towing dynamometer used at Ford’s Arizona proving grounds can simulate up to a 30 percent grade.

Everything on the dyno is controlled by a touch screen display inside the truck.

“The new Super Duty is really impressive,” said Jim Sumner, Ford product development engineer. “In more than 25 years of doing this work, we used the same dyno, which did the job, but the new truck is so powerful we needed new equipment to test out its capability. The fact that even under full load, Super Duty didn’t have any trouble at all is a testament to just how capable this new truck is.”

Ford can test the Super Duty on places like Davis Dam and Townes Pass without leaving the proving grounds. This enables them to make any needed changes at a location where they have the tools. It will save them both time and money in the long run, if not already.

Are they pulling a dyno or a Chevy? Maybe Ford is pushing harder knowing they are towing a Chevy.

“Any test engineer in North America knows about Davis Dam,” said Sumner. “It’s a demanding hill going from sea level to more than 3,000 feet in 11.2 miles, and is an ideal location to test towing capability. With this dyno, we can test the all-new Super Duty on that hill – but from right here on the level surface of our Arizona Proving Grounds.”

Townes Pass is approximately 16 miles long, featuring an average grade of 5.1 percent and a maximum grade of 10.1 percent. Davis Dam is also effective for testing vehicle capabilities without having to make the trip to the real hill in Bullhead City, Arizona. It expedites testing, and helps Ford engineers make sure everything is working correctly.

The dyno may look like a Corvette and may play into the whole Ford versus Chevy battle and help push the engineers further, but either way this is a great new way to test the towing capabilities of the truck.